Father Damien: The man became a saint

As a regular visitor to the Hawaiian island, the legend of Father Damien always fascinate me. I have read a few biographies about him. On this day that he will be canonized, it is good to be reminded that no man is perfect.

'We Lepers'

As the Roman Catholic Church recognizes Hawaii's hero as a saint, what should we think about his chief posthumous critic?

by Ted Olsen | September 17, 2009 (ChristianHistory.net)

It has been a good year for my old home state of Hawaii: it started the year with one of its own becoming President, and on October 11 one of its most famous heroes will officially become a saint of the Roman Catholic Church.

Even among Hawaii’s most Protestant Protestants, Damien de Veuster is praised as a man who exemplified incarnational, sacrificial ministry. The Belgian priest did not first go to the islands to minister to the Hansen's disease victims of the Kalaupapa colony on Molokai, but in 1873 he eagerly volunteered to minister.

“My Lord, remembering that I was placed under the pall on the day of my religious profession, thereby to learn voluntary death is the beginning of new life,” he told his bishop, “here I am, ready to bury myself alive among these unfortunate people, several of whom are personally known to me.”

read more